Greetings creative Fold!
I know there’re a bunch of you out there who also make something. Maybe it’s a comic, maybe it’s just a blog, maybe it’s paintings, or books or maybe you have aspirations to do these things. This post is for you. If you’re not a creator or aspiring creator, this post is still for you because chances are you like what we do.
“We need to stick together.”
After my post the other day, I received an email that said, “we need to stick together.”
It’s so true. If you’re posting something online for free that you’ve created for the enjoyment of others, we need to stick together.
Sticking together can mean a whole lot of things, but the main way that I’m thinking is by reading and sharing. I don’t think that everyone needs to share everything (I, for one, have a hard time sharing things with excessive swearing in them due to my circles of influence), but if you find something funny/heartfelt/awesome/whatever on someone’s site, tell people. But the only way you’ll know if it’s there is by checking out the work of others.
One thing that I get caught up in is posting my own stuff, then expecting people to come to my site and look at my stuff and I won’t look through my list of comics and read myself. That’s being selfish. I’ve recently even cut out a few big name cartoonists from my Twitter feed and their comics from my RSS Reader (Google, of course) because of an attitude just like this. If I don’t like other people doing this, how can I continue doing it?
So what does this mean for you out there who aren’t creating?
Share! Explore!
There’re some great webcomics and authors listed on my links page, but it is far from extensive. There are great artists/authors doing amazing things and posting them for free on the internet for your enjoyment! Use sites like StumbleUpon, Reddit or another social bookmarking site to help you find new stuff. Some of it is awesome. And if you like it, share it. Use the buttons that nearly every creator has on their sites. You don’t have to know what all of them are, just use the ones that you do! It’ll still make them happy and get their work out there.
What does this mean for creators?
Share! Explore!
You have no excuses for not doing these things. All of the things I’ve said above count just as much, if not more, for you as a creator. I need to know this as much as you. It’s hard to do it all, but we need to stick together, and this is how to do it.
What’s your favorite way to find new stuff on the internet?
-bman
15 replies on “Stick together”
i think i’m going to start a webcomic just so i have something to share. it can’t be that hard, right?
You don’t have to have a comic to have something to share. This all works equally for bloggers, musicians, etc. Also, making a webcomic can be super easy. 😛
I completely agree with this! So often it’s possible to feel like you’re completely alone when you’re a creator. I’ve been trying to comment more on the things I like and share those things with others, because I believe that we should give what we want to receive.
Nice article, I’m definitely going to be sharing it!
🙂 Thanks!
I use both Reddit and Stumbleupon, but lately I’ve been using Reddit more often. I make a point of going through people’s webcomic submissions and upvoting them or I’ll try to comment either on their site or Reddit. I like getting comments even if it doesn’t turn into a huge conversation, it’s just nice to know that someone read and acknowledged the comic I just spent 4 hours of my life on.
I feel like creators on reddit are too frugal with their upvotes. I bet I could draw and post a comic on /r/ webcomics and get 2 votes, but do the same joke as a half-assed rage comic and get over 100 (I got most of my link karma from 3 rage comics and 2 image macros). I don’t know if it’s the culture of the people who read webcomics vs rage comics or what, but it sucks to know that only 200 people just visited my site and maybe only half of them actually read what I did.
I’ll try to comment more. If anything I’ll be a morale booster.
I think you’re right. One of the reasons that I could think of is that you want your link at the top of the list, not theirs. Reddit isn’t necessarily set up in a way that artists can really help each other out as much as it is set up to watch us fight to the death.
Note to self: make half-assed rage comic, post on Reddit
The problem is really that your comic would likely do 95% better on Imgur than it would on your webpage… cruel world.
When it comes to music, I like to use Pandora and Purevolume. Generally speaking, I rely on the links my friends are sharing in their Facebook and Twitter feeds, which is not only how I find my fun stuff, but my news and my educational articles too.
When I want to find more webcomics, I go to the webcomics I already read and check out what they’re linking to. In particular, I’ve found a lot of good strips via the links page at Multiplex; Gordon McAlpin has good taste in comics!
That’s what I hear! He seems to be a cool dude.
” (I, for one, have a hard time sharing things with excessive swearing in them due to my circles of influence)” This is funny, because like you I am the renegade at church. My comic has enough occasional filth that I don’t even share the *clean* ones with members of my church (though a few have sought it out, including my pastor!).
I have resolved that when I redo my website, I’m going to add two things: An alternate ending “button” (so many of my comics have alternate punchlines drawn up…) and a “SFW” option.
Until then, I know I am limiting myself even more. Limited humor AND limited audience-due-to-mass-profanities. (well, not “mass” as in Catholic, but…you know)
Brian
http://ThreePeopleGetIt.com
Haha. Good luck with that, friend. You can blame it on the devil though. That’s the bonus part.
I couldnt agree more. the problem is that the people i kept sticking to, all seemed to stop updating. the MWWCC is still but a dream for now.
i hear ya totally. the last few weeks i’ve really tried to make an effort to keep up to date with as many comics as i can. i had the same kind of revelation. “i want poeple to comment on my posts more”…..which was followed by “well…..i never comment on the comics i read”. so i decided to be more interactive with the comics i read. and lo and behold, the favor is usually returned in some fashion. sticking together works!
I agree with your points Brian as this is a topic that often irks me.
I often come across comics I like, add them to my RSS Reader, visit regularly & comment for a week or 2. Many of them never return the visit & comment on my site though & it often feels like a one way effort. About once a month my RSS Reader gets a clean out.
Even if I really like a comic I just find it hard to keep contributing comments & visits if the other party can’t be bothered in return. Some never even respond to the comments left on their own sites. I often come across comics that seem popular on some of those Comic Index sites yet they get very few comments & I think it’s for the reason that they they don’t make the effort themselves as far as others are concerned. Even if people visit my site regularly, if they don’t comment I have no way of knowing they’ve been there & repaying the visit to theirs.
Great post Brian.